Second year of record enrollment

September 14, 2011

With an enrollment of 1,197 students, Cornell College set a record for the second year in a row.

This year’s class of new students has 385 members, and is among the most geographically and ethnically diverse in the history of Cornell, with students from 42 states and 10 countries and 25 percent domestic students of color. They are academic achievers, with 14 valedictorians, six salutatorians and 57 students who held a 4.0 or better GPA, and they are involved in co-curricular activities, as well. Sixteen percent were class or organization presidents, 15 percent were captains of a sport, 32 percent were varsity athletes, 34 percent were musicians, and 19 percent were involved in theatre.

“Cornell received 3,600 applications for admission this past year,” said Jonathan Stroud, vice president for enrollment. “This volume of interest enables the college to make offers of admission based upon a careful assessment of the academic and personal fit of a student with the level of academic challenge and quality of community here at Cornell. We are excited about the talents and interests of our incoming class. They have already demonstrated an extraordinary capacity for and commitment to learning, intellectual curiosity, a taste for adventure and exploration, and a desire to make a difference in their communities and beyond.”

Twenty percent of students are from Iowa, and 17 percent from Illinois. The rest of the top 10 are California, Colorado, Minnesota, Arizona, Wisconsin, Florida, Missouri and Texas.

“We’re pleased to welcome some of the best students from Iowa, 41 other states and around the world this fall,” said Cornell President Jonathan Brand. “Cornell’s academic rigor, creative teaching and flexible One Course At A Time calendar help ensure that we draw students to campus, once again, in record numbers. This puts us in an excellent position as we continue to work to strengthen Cornell further and increase enrollment.”

Featured in Colleges That Change Lives, Cornell College in Mount Vernon, Iowa, is a national liberal arts college with a distinctive One Course At A Time (OCAAT), or block, academic calendar. The OCAAT calendar provides students with intellectual immersion, academic focus, and unique freedom to shed the confines of the traditional classroom to study off-campus, pursue research, or accept an internship—all without missing out on other classes. Cornell’s excellent faculty, majors and interdisciplinary programs, and engaging residential life all combine to offer numerous extraordinary opportunities in the classroom, on campus, and around the world. Founded in 1853, the college’s entire hilltop campus is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.